A RECENT Essex survey found that 75% of young people had seen content of serious violence when viewing content on social media channels.
During February 2024, the Essex Violence and Vulnerability Unit and Essex Council for Voluntary Youth Services ran a short online survey, asking young people about their experiences of violent content on social media, and the results are as follows:
Seventy five percent of young people have seen serious violence online; of those who had seen this serious violence online 26% said it had featured people they knew – either friends, acquaintances, or people from their local area.
When asked what channels young people had seen violent content on, nearly half of young people questioned (49%) mentioned TikTok; followed by Instagram at 40% and Snapchat at 38%.
When asked if they had experienced violent crime themselves, a third of young people said they had witnessed it in real life, which while a concern is much lower than the numbers exposed to violence online.
Roger Hirst, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex and Chair of the Violence and Vulnerability Partnership said: “This short, snapshot survey gives us further insight in this area which mirrors the current concerns of parents not just across Essex, but the entire country.
“It is unacceptable that our young people are being exposed to online content that is harmful, upsetting and inappropriate. The results clearly indicate we must keep having open conversations with our children, and the young people that we support, about what they are seeing online.
“It is our responsibility to help them understand what is right, wrong, real and fake, and where they can go to for support and advice if they see something online that troubles or upsets them.
“Supporting the vulnerable and protecting young people are key priorities in my Police and Crime Plan and through the Violence and Vulnerability Unit we work with young people to build resilience, strengthening factors which are known to prevent and reduce serious violence, and make our communities safer.“
For parents who want to understand more about online safety, the Essex Violence and Vulnerability Unit is a partner in the Essex Safeguarding Children Board’s online safety campaign which has resources, advice and guidance about how to keep young people safe online. ESCB – Online Safety
We also work closely with Essex Police on their Sort Your Settings campaign which has information about how to keep safe when playing the latest online games or visiting social media sites and online interactive platforms. Sort your settings | Essex Police
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